Spuren von Gestern im Heute – Europa grenzenlos neu entdecken Traces of yesterday in the present – Rediscovering Europe without borders Dear friends of our Erasmus project, our project entitled "Traces of yesterday in the present - Rediscovering Europe without borders" will come to an end after two years with the end of the school year 2020/21 with this last joint work on a booklet. With much anticipation, commitment and great expectations we started our getting to know each other in October 2019 in the German town of Waldkraiburg and were not disappointed. We found friends in the partner countries and worked together with commitment on the creation of the city of Waldkraiburg and getting to know the partners motivated everyone to continue working together. The second highlight of the project was the project week in Luxembourg at the beginning of March 2020. Here the spectre of the coronavirus was already in the background and required the highest effort from all participants to be able to carry out the meeting. We made it and it was a great week with very special experiences as impressions and deepened our friendships and our knowledge of the history of Luxembourg. As the 2020 school year progressed, we all had to deal with the effects of the pandemic and discoveries in a Europe without borders were suddenly no longer possible. Contacts were only possible online, students were no longer in school, and so cooperation also became more and more difficult. Nevertheless, we did not lose sight of each other and worked together online, but the planned meetings in Komarno/Slovakia and in Montserrat/Spain could no longer be held, much to all our regret. Since the meetings are the highlights of every Erasmus project and for getting to know each other and deepening friendships the real meetings are simply irreplaceable, the pandemic robbed us of a lot of enthusiasm. Nevertheless, we accomplished a lot together and made friends in other European countries. The experiences will remain in our hearts and all participating students will remember this cooperation in their later lives. This was a very special Erasmus project for me personally because it was the last one in my school life, I am retiring. I have led a total of five Erasmus projects and so in the many years of joint cooperation I have really only met open, committed and motivated students, parents, teachers, school administrators and helping people throughout Europe. But it was worth it for each and every one of these participants to take on all the work that goes behind such a project for each coordinating teacher. And I hope that many more teachers will be willing to carry out Erasmus projects and I wish many students to be able to participate. Long live cooperation and friendship in Europe! Regina Weidl project coordinator, Waldkraiburg WALDKRAIBURG (Germany) The history of our town - From the bunker to the adventure town The history of our young town begins with the Second World War, because a powder factory for explosives was built for the ruthlessness industry on the present area of the town of Waldkraiburg, at that time a forest area. After 1946, refugees and In 1950, the industrial settlement became an expellees from the former independent municipality and was given the German territories in Eastern name "Waldkraiburg". In 1960, the municipality and Southeastern Europe was elevated to the status of a city. The (mainly from Bohemia and population grew from 2,659 in 1950 to 25,699 in Moravia, the Sudetenland and 2020. In the city there are very many housing Silesia - today the Czech opportunities and companies such as industries, Republic and Poland) settled on which provide more than 8000 jobs. Today the factory site, which had been Waldkraiburg is a modern and cosmopolitan town blown up by the Allies. With and has inhabitants from many different great diligence, they built countries. All kinds of schools are available. residential houses and Museums, concerts, theater and cinema as well businesses, often using old as many sports activities offer a lot of leisure time bunkers. activities. The students of the Erasmu smeeting in Waldkraiburg in fall 2019 with their teachers in front of one of the still existing bunkers. Effects of history on our daily lives Waldkraiburg is a cosmopolitan town that is Further immigration movements after home to people of many nationalities. Since the the war: founding of the town of Waldkraiburg until ● 1954/55 people from the Balkans today, many displaced persons and refugees (Romanians, Turks, Hungarians, etc.) have found accommodation and a home here. ● 1974 Berliners Waldkraiburg offers a safe home to people of many nationalities. At our school, too, students ● 1989 Eastern European from all over the world learn together countries (former Soviet countries) peacefully. Many people who live here have ● 2015 African countries experienced displacement and refugee life →Total of 103 different nations live themselves or through their families, and thus peacefully side by side today. have an understanding for others. Religions in our city (2019 figures): ● Old Catholic 19 (20) ● Protestant 3.199 (3.329) ● Roman Catholic 11,116 (11,384) ● not specified 10,045 (9,878) ● Greek Orthodox 71 (61) ● Romanian Orthodox 844 (759) ● Russian Orthodox 76 (66) Waldkraiburg has one Catholic, one Protestant, one Romanian Orthodox, one New Apostolic and one Evangelical Free Church (Baptist) as well as two mosques. Protestant church Famous companies established by refugees Many refugees have founded companies in Waldkraiburg, which today operate worldwide and offer many jobs. Three companies are to be presented as an example. With the end of the Second World War, the Carl Dickow Company in Görlitz (former GDR) was expropriated and only a small part of the machines could be saved. With these machines the company rebuilt the pump production in Waldkraiburg and was able to expand and enlarge the company again and again by manufacturing special pumps. Today the company employs 200 people and delivers all over the world. https://dickow.de/index.php/de/ueber-dickow- The picture shows one of the gears that pumpen/geschichte succeeded in rebuilding the company. In 1946, 13 displaced musical instrument makers founded Graslitzer Musikinstrumentenerzeuger eGmbH and started their work in the wooden room of a The company KRAIBURG was founded in 1947 as a family barrack. With the knowledge they brought with business, which was already them, they decided to build brass instruments engaged in the material rubber at and named their company MIRAPHONE. It is. that time. It manages about 2500 Today Miraphone is one of the largest employees, and in 2019 it reached instrument manufacturers in the world. The about €560 million in sales. The company operates internationally. company has an annual turnover of 6.2 million www.kraiburg-rubber- euros with 90 employees. compounds.com/gummiwerk/ https://www.miraphone.de/unternehmen.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The connection of our city to other countries The many refugees and displaced persons from the former German territories in Southern and Eastern Europe alone have established a connection to the former settlement areas via local history societies that were founded later. One would like to preserve the memory for the descendants, to pass on the historical knowledge and to keep the contacts among the fate companions alive. Sponsorship Adlergebirge Thus Waldkraiburg is the sponsor town for the Sudeten Germans from the Adlergebirge, in today's Czech Republic. Quelle: https://www.waldkraiburg.de/st adt-verwaltung/rathaus/die- stadt/partner-und- patenschaften/patenschaft- adlergebirge --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sponsorship Haida In 1985 the town of Waldkraiburg took over the sponsorship for the Sudeten German town of Haida, because former Haida residents participated in the founding and building of the town of Waldkraiburg after the war and glass was produced and refined in Waldkraiburg, as it had been in Haida in the past. The glass collection "Haida and surroundings" can be admired in the museum of the House of Culture. Haida glass bowl -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In more recent times, Waldkraiburg has seen an influx of many people from Turkey, Greece and Russian-Germans, among others, who have founded local history societies or compatriots' associations here, as this plaque in the museum of local history testifies. Erasmus students at the Museum in Waldkraiburg ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Town twinning with Sartrouville/ France At the Gymnasium Waldkraiburg we have Since 1997, Waldkraiburg and the city of long-standing school Sartrouville, which is located near Paris, have partnerships with the been twinned. People visit each other, get to know Lycée Cormontaigne in new people, and openness and hospitality are the Metz, France and a top priorities for both partners. The German- high school in French friendship is cultivated and the culture and Chambersburg, way of life of the other is discovered. In Waldkra- Pennsylvania, USA. iburg there is the partnership association We have a school Waldkraiburg-Sartrouville e.V., which plans the partnership with joint activities. In Waldkraiburg there is a Sartrouville/ France. Sartrouville square. Komárno